GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – The Green Bay Area Public School District parent who started the petition to remove Superintendent Michelle Langenfeld feels district officials are ignoring taxpayer concerns.
Elliot Christenson started circulating the petition over the weekend and notes he was nearing 100 signatures by Tuesday afternoon.
“It’s probably a somewhat controversial issue, and a lot of people don’t like attaching their name to that. I felt pretty comfortable with 100 being deliverable, to bring to (the school board) next month at their meeting.”
The petition follows allegations made at June’s school board meeting by former Washington Middle School teacher Kirsten Westcott, who said, as she announced her resignation, that conditions at the school have become unsafe for both students and faculty.
Once the matter gained public attention on WTAQ”s Jerry Bader Show, district officials held a press conference to address Westcott’s allegations.
At this month’s school board meeting, Westcott stated the district hadn’t done enough to alleviate the concerns.
Christenson agrees with Westcott, explaining how he would have handled things.
“The superintendent should have said ‘I didn’t realize the problems were as severe as they are but to address it, I’m going to move my office to Washington Middle School for the rest of the year.’”
Christenson claims the school board has been ‘brushing off’ residents who have brought forth concerns.
“The president of the school board called my petition a distraction. Maybe it is, but you know what: do something. They’re just not.”
Christenson says he does not blame the teachers or faculty at Washington or any other school for these problems as they have to deal with ‘quite a bit of red tape.’
He has no desire to pull his son, who attends Lombardi Middle School, from the district.
